Alberta, B.C. preparing for early start to wildfire season
Wildfires in Alberta and B.C. appear to be getting off to an early start this year.
Both province's wildfire services are doing what they can to prepare for what's expected to be a tough summer.
Wildfires have already forced some near Edmonton and Fort McMurray to evacuate. This year, there have been 198 wildfires across Alberta.
Experts say it won't be long before fires are seen further south in Alberta.
“We did have drought-like conditions over the winter months here in the province," said Melissa Story, an information officer with Alberta Wildfire.
"So we saw less snow than we typically would, so that led to an elevated fire danger. We did legislatively start the fire season early in the province on February 20 as opposed to our usual start on March 1."
It’s a similar story in B.C. where fires are already popping up in the Prince George and Cariboo fire zones.
The province is coming off its worst fire season ever with over 1.4 million hectares burnt.
“There's definitely quite a bit of concern heading into the 2024 fire season,” said Matt MacDonald, lead fire weather forecaster for the B.C. Wildfire Service.
"Over the past week, I think we've seen some really good examples of some early season fires that are digging in already in mid-April and already exhibiting some rather aggressive fire behaviours."
Provincial wildfire services aren't the only ones getting ready.
The Regional District of East Kootenay had to deal with several wildfires last year. They're starting prep work to deal with whatever comes their way.
“We do a lot of prep each year. We do it regardless of what the previous fire season was," said Christina Carbrey, protective services manager for the Regional District of East Kootenay.
"It's one of those things where you never know what you're going to get so we always need to be prepared. This fire season coming up certainly has the potential to be quite challenging but there's a tonne of variables in there."
Southern Alberta isn't out of the woods when it comes to wildfires either – dry weather and high risk have the region on high alert for grass fires.
“Make sure conditions are right if you're doing any burning. As soon as it gets windy a wildfire can start very easily and spread quickly,” said Story.
Some municipalities have already started declaring fire restrictions. Currently, Lethbridge has a fire advisory declared for the river valley.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.